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Blackberry Apple Galettes And Burnt Sugar Ice Cream

February 15, 2009

Yesterday I woke up to the sound of my husband's trombone and although he rarely rehearses at home it did not strike me as unusual. It felt nice actually. Deep, resonant notes, slightly muted as they came through the floor and walls. I immediately recognized the melody of "our" song, "Can't give you anything but love". The trombone stopped, the pupps rushed down the steps toward the bedroom and when they saw the door open, the immediately jumped on the bed to give me a good round of morning licks. Nice..although not earth shaterring new.

The unusual part was they were spotting brand new heart shaped name tags and a love poem was tucked inside a notch of their collars. Ah! Love Day! A serenade, two pimped up furry fuzz balls and the man whose love is more beautiful than anything I have ever known. Love and the little funny things in life, as we try to live them everyday. Except he tied it all up in a virtual red bow and I had extra butterflies in my stomach. Singletons out there, do not despair!

Hidden from him were my breakfast plans. I know B. and I know he loves and enjoy eating and one thing we share is our love for pies, tartlets or galettes and a good ice cream, separate, together, one after the other, etc....Granted this breakfast was a little richer than what we usually have but B. is playing music, serenading others this lovely night, so it was like starting the day the way we would have ended it if we had been together, with dessert. I had made blackberry and apple galettes as a thank you gift for a neighbor and kept one for us to share and topped ours with a scoop of burnt sugar ice cream. Come to think of it, we had all the major food group covered!

The beauty of these galettes is that you can use any combination of fruits that strikes your fancy and you don't have to worry about tart pans and sizes, blind baking, etc... The pate sucree dough gets just a little rolling, filling, crimping and you're almost there. I like to add a pinch of fresh cracked pepper to the fruits to enhance their flavor as they bake. The burnt sugar ice cream is one of my favorites from Dorie Greenspan, almost enough to make any man or woman swoon it is that good, creamy and tasty.

Breakfast that is enough make you want to give your mate an extra hug or kiss today and for the days to come...And for those of you who inquired about my friend Linda who was proposing with a ring and a box of heart macarons, I just got a text message that her partner said "yes!" and then there were pelnty of these "!" and a bunch of smileys....

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar and salt and cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or two forks until the mixture ressembles forms pea size crumbs. Make a well in the center and add the egg. With a fork, start working the flour in a little at a time and when most of it is incorporated, quickly mix the dough into a coherent and smooth mass, adding some cold water, a tablespoon at a time, if necessary (this varies depending on the humidity or altitude of where you live). Wrap the dough in plastic and let it rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

In a medium saucepan set over medium low heat, cook the apple with one tablespoon of sugar and the lemon juice until fork tender. Add the blackberries and let them cook for a couple of minutes. Dilute the cornstarch in the water and add it to the fruits along with the cracked pepper. Cook until the mixture is not cloudy anymore from the cornstarch. Remove from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

To assemble:Preheat the oven to 350F.Roll the dough onto a lightly floured surface to 1/4 inch thick and cut three 6-inch rounds in it and place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Fill the center of each round with the filling and crimp the edges towards the center. I don't like to cover the fruit that much with the dough but that is a personal preference. Brush the crust with egg wash and sprinkle with the remaining sugar over the galettes. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Stir the sugar and water in a saucepan and cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and cook until it becomes a caramel of deep amber color. Lower the heat and add the milk. It will bubble like mad but continue stirring until the mixture is smooth, remove from the heat. Add the cream and stir until combined.In a large bowl, whip the egg yolks and salt until pale and thick. Slowly pour the hot milk mixture over it and whisk to temper the yolks. Put the mixture back into the saucepan and cook until it coats the back of a spoon (creme anglaise consistency or 170 degrees F).Let cool completely and refrigerate until very cold (preferably overnight. Process the ice according your ice cream maker manufacturer's instructions. Freeze for 2 hours or more or until firm to scoop.

What a treat for brekkie! I love how you make every small serving more glorious than it would be large. As for your friend - I know of no person who could say no against your creations. Work that magic, woman! xxoo

How sweet of your husband! Ha those galettes are surely to please they look awesome and colours are fantastic. Seems you had a Happy Valentine's day and I m happy for you. The ice cream is really interesteing I v enever tried burnt sugar ice cream I realy wonder what it tastes like, Pity I odn t have an ice cream machine I would defiietly try it.

Hi there Helen! I stumbled across your blog a couple of days ago on Flickr... and since then I have been spending my free time trying to catch up on all of your exquisite desserts and charming stories! I just wanted to say thank you so much for being willing to share your expertise with us! I appreciate the way that you make these daunting desserts seem so much more attainable! I am looking forward to given them a try... seeing what you come up with next... and buying your book when it come out! :) All the best!

By coincidence, I've also chosen to make burnt sugar ice cream for Valentine's Day, which I had never made before. I've added a small pinch of Fleur de Sel de Guérande in the sugar before burning it. It gives a special but non-salty taste to the ice cream. Exquisite!

Thank you for giving in to Rick's request that you post larger pictures :) You made his day and consequently mine because I can't stop drooling over the galettes...again! Thank you for bringing these over!

What a lovely way to start valentine day! Haha... I had to laugh as my sweetheart thought it was the perfect time to go out and catch a fish early in the morning... And I had to work. So much for romance this year!I'm sure we'll make it up next year.Loved your story!!Simone

The galette and ice cream looks wonderful. I've made lots of ice creams from "The Perfect Scoop", but I've never tried any of Dorie Greenspans. It's funny to see that I just read this-I have 2 apple galettes in my oven baking right now!

Helen- your day sounded perfect! We share something in common- my love plays instrument too (guitar) and wrote another song for me. Thank you Helen for always giving from the heart! Hmmm... do you think you will ever move to the Chicago area?! Many hugs... and a golden day!PS your caramels were a hit even for a mother in law that doesn't eat sweets!!! xoxo

I just made the gallettes with peaches and blackberries. So nummy. and I was inspired by your photos to shape them nicely, and to do the egg wash, which really spiffs them up. I served them Saturday to guests, and just made more to share tomorrow with my CityFruit group - we pick fruit from donated trees, and take to the Food Bank.

We just made this for the TWD group. I also used 5 egg yolks, but only because I had a double yolk in the mix. The ice cream must have been wonderful with the blackberry and apple galette. It's nearly blackberry season here. I'll definitely try your combination soon.

Can anyone please tell me what the purpose of the corn starch in the fruit mix is? Would it work without this? I have corn flour, which I assume is the same thing...but want to know why it is necessary.

I'm baking these right now:) They look good! Unfortunately my oven is really old and not very good; it doesn't turn anything golden brown. They've been in there for 20 minutes already and still not golden. I hope I don't overcook them!